


Singularity (and Duality)

by MissWonnykins



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Comfort, Developing Relationship, Emotional Support, Established Relationship, F/M, M/M, Mewtwo - Freeform, Parents, Pre-Relationship, Slow Burn, bad break up, battle of the badge mention, sexuality exploration
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-31
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2019-02-25 23:12:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 9,802
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13223235
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MissWonnykins/pseuds/MissWonnykins
Summary: There to prop you up whenever you need it...even if you never ask for it.---Palletshipping Secret Santa 2017 - gift for redismute





	1. Fear

**Author's Note:**

  * For [RedIsMute (Cammerel)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cammerel/gifts).



> This was my entry for the Palletshipping Secret Santa 2017; my 'kid' is redismute. Cheers~

Gary Oak is ten, and he can’t really remember the last time he spent time with Ash without belittling him.

 

The day before didn’t count. In fact, he’d been steadfastly trying to forget the entire day as much as he possibly could. If he wanted to be technical, maybe he’d let the other half of that particular day count...but not the first. The middle part didn’t really have anything to do with Ash, but…

 

...but maybe that’s why he’s been stuck on the subject for the past 24 hours. It doesn’t really help that Gary’s extremely tired from lack of sleep. He can’t help it-- every time he closes his eyes - 

 

**_Humans...are all worthless…_ **

 

With a shudder, Gary sets his chin down on his arms. The Pokemon Center is quiet, as it’s rather late. Nurse Joy isn’t all that enthused that he wants her to check on his Pokemon yet again so close to midnight, but he’s worried about them and he knows that she sympathizes with him. He’d give anything to be able to have Eevee back; the little furball cuddled up under his chin at night would probably help him sleep far better than he had the night before. 

 

And there it is again, his nervousness over sleeping. Maybe Nurse Joy can see that, too, because she left him a warm cup of tea to drink a little while ago.

 

Groaning, Gary tilts his face down so that his forehead is nestled between his arms. Even the darkness there is enough to make him uneasy. His thoughts forcefully shift to his rival again to rid himself of his anxiety. Has he really been awful this entire time? He can’t recall many times since they began traveling that he had anything decent to say about or to Ash at all. Individual instances of his taunting make the boy wince. No...even before that, before that first day on the road.

 

It’s when Gary is absently digging around in his pocket for something when he hears footsteps coming down the hall. Fully prepared to reassure one of his girls that, yes, he’ll be coming back soon, he raises his head and opens his mouth. He feels it’s a reflex when what comes out is:

 

“Sleepwalking, Ashy-Boy?”

 

In Ash Ketchum’s arms, his Pikachu gives a soft and exasperated ‘chu’. Ash himself reels back slightly, frowning. “I can’t sleep.” Is all he says. For once, Gary manages to keep himself in check. He offers a shrug, turning back to watch the dark area behind the counter. Nurse Joy can be heard still rummaging around - Gary’s mind tricks him into thinking he hears Eevee, but he knows the Pokemon will be out cold for another few hours at least. The thought sends him right back into the muddled area he was in before.

 

The silence has turned awkward. Gary’s acutely aware that Ash hasn’t moved from his spot since their brief exchange, and it’s through exhaustion alone that Gary hasn’t told him to get lost. It... _ is _ just because he’s tired, right? 

 

Gary realizes that he actually  _ wants _ Ash there around the time Ash speaks up again.

 

“Are your Pokemon doin’ okay?”

 

Right, yes, that was why he was here, wasn’t it? After a moment, Gary puts his elbow on the counter and uses his palm to prop up his head. His boot toe taps absently at the tile floor. “Nurse Joy says they’re gonna be fine.” He finally answers.

 

“That’s good.” The way Ash says it is filled with relief, so much that it surprises Gary. He turns his head slightly so that he can see his rival and - sure enough - Ash is actually smiling at him. It fades immediately. “I know they were really beat up when we found you...but I’m glad they’re gonna be okay!”

 

There’s a few seconds - during which Ash seems to become rather uncomfortable - before Gary finally settles on something to say that isn’t antagonistic. “Me too.” He mumbles, focusing back on the space in front of him instead of Ash. 

 

That ought to be all. Ash should just take the hint and get back to doing...whatever he was doing. Something that wasn’t bothering Gary. As it stands, Ash is probably tone deaf and Gary’s been way too hopeful for the opposite. 

 

Hesitantly, Ash asks another question. “Are...are  _ you _ okay?”

 

This time, Gary’s caught off-guard enough to answer right away...even if it is a dumb-sounding ‘Huh?’.  His chin comes off of his hand, his eyes finally opening fully. Ash is looking at him like...it’s hard to explain. Gary settles on how he himself looked at his Pokemon when first handing them over to Nurse Joy the day before. It’s partly guilty, partly worried. He’s not sure why Ash feels either of those things towards him. 

 

“Are you okay?” Ash repeats. He shifts his weight to one side, arching one of his eyebrows. “You-- You look tired.”

 

Gary’s not sure what Ash meant to say instead, but he knows it wasn’t that lame sounding thing about looking tired. “I’m fine.” He hears himself saying, as if he’s dreaming this whole thing and listening to another version of himself. Ash looks unconvinced. “What’re you so worried about ME for?” It’s an honest question, because Gary’s bewildered over it. 

 

He doesn’t get it. He remembers waking up from a living nightmare, limp in Ash’s arms, and seeing the look on his rival’s face. He remembers the relief that seemed to take over Ash’s entire expression. Why? He’s been nothing but rotten to his old friend--

 

\--they used to be friends, didn’t they? That hurts somewhere, and Gary doesn’t like it.

 

Ash is being way more patient with his hostilities than usual, too. The shorter boy gives Pikachu’s chin a scratch, taking his time before explaining himself (something he really doesn’t need to do). “I...I dunno what actually happened to you guys...but I know you got hurt just like your Pokemon did. I know you’re worried about’em. I would be.” Of course he would - Ash Ketchum has a literal heart of gold. “I saw you up really late last night, too.”

 

Well...shoot. Gary doesn’t really have a rebuttal for that that isn’t ‘Stalking me, loser?’, so he keeps quiet. 

 

He doesn’t hear Ash move closer, so it makes him jolt when the boy places a hand on his arm. He glares, but Ash doesn’t move away. “I know we’re not really friends.” ‘Anymore’ Gary hears at the end, though it remains unsaid, “But I don’t want stuff like that to happen to you. I dunno what actually happened, but I thought you--”

 

He doesn’t finish. He can’t, Gary realizes. For the first time, he puts himself in Ash’s shoes and tries to look at it all through his eyes. He can picture Ash finding him and his girls lifeless and tries to think about what he’d do if he found Ash the same way, his friends sprawled out around him like they were…

 

...he can’t imagine how that must feel. Even if they haven’t been friends in a while, Gary can’t fathom how terrified he’d be if he saw Ash the way Ash had seen Gary the day before. 

 

“...You’re okay, too, right?” He finds himself asking all of a sudden. Ash doesn’t seem to have expected it at all. Even his Pikachu seems taken aback. No use in stopping this train, now. “Team Rocket was pretty ruthless on you during your battle. I know getting shocked isn’t new to you-- no offense,” Gary quickly murmurs to Pikachu, “but still…”

 

“I didn’t die.” Ash bluntly replies. He bites his lip, looking regretful of his wording. They’re both aware that they’re skirting around what Ash is really worried about, and at last Ash grows tired of it and blurts out: “I thought you did.”

 

Silence falls between them. Ash is tense, waiting for some sort of response, and Gary can’t manage to unstick his tongue from the roof of his mouth. He eyes the room beyond the counter, knowing Nurse Joy is only just where he can’t see her and can probably hear every word. His Pokemon are back there, each of them hooked up to machines to monitor their vitals. Eevee is in a plastic box - Gary wasn’t allowed to even touch her when he’d gone back to see her. Phantom pain races along his temples, over the top of his skull. 

 

**_You...are worthless…_ **

 

Gary Oak, who hasn’t been at all nice to Ash Ketchum since a year or so ago, caves. He feels his expression fall and can’t bring himself to look at his rival. “I don’t think it wanted to...y’know…” He mutters, picking at a chipped spot on the counter.

 

“It?”

 

“Yeah. Some Pokemon I’ve never seen before, remember? I told you when you-- when you found me.” It takes a lot to swallow down much of the emotion welling up in his throat. Residual terror, embarrassment, anguish...all of them had flickered in and out of his subconscious as he’d opened his eyes yesterday to see Ash’s horrified face. Gary clears his throat, and it helps only a little. “It was standing like a person, and it was covered in this armor. It was so weird...and the gym leader didn’t really even have to tell it to do anything. It just did it. It’s gotta be a Psychic-type Pokemon...if it even IS a Pokemon.”

 

“I’ve never heard of one like that.” Ash admits quietly from beside him. Tiny claws scratch lightly on vinyl countertop as his Pikachu jumps to it. This leaves Ash to mirror Gary’s pose against the counter. Their shoulders brush; Gary doesn’t mind, really. It gives him a little bit of the feeling hugging Eevee would have - comfort. “It must’ve been really strong to have taken out all of your Pokemon. That’s not an easy thing to do.” As much as Gary wants to give in and boastfully accept the compliment, he just doesn’t have the energy in him. Ash’s next words are a bit softer. “...I’m sorry about them. I know you said they’re gonna get better, but that’s gotta be rough. I’ve seen some of mine in really bad shape, just not all at once…”

 

“Pika-chu.” A small, yellow paw pats at one of Gary’s wrists. He’s never really interacted with Pikachu one on one like this, so he’s fairly bemused by its sympathy. 

 

“Thank you.” His fingers twitch, then reach up cautiously to itch along Pikachu’s tiny arm. The Pokemon allows him to rub under it’s chin and along its ears. “...For finding us, too. We could’ve been in a whole lot more trouble if we’d been left there.”

 

When Ash shrugs, it slightly jostles him. “I wish I could say we did it on purpose, but...we were just looking for Misty’s Togepi. I’m glad we ended up finding you, anyway. I’m confused, though: how come you and your cheerleaders were all knocked out?”

 

He really, really wishes Ash hadn’t asked. Still, no one else is around and Gary’s not up for squandering the opportunity to vent. “It attacked us.”

 

Ash and Pikachu both inhale sharply, making appalled noises. “What-?!”

 

“The Gym Leader told it to.” Gary continues, his eyes glazed over. “I could hear it, in my head. The girls did, too - they told me about it afterwards. It was awful.” After a moment of hesitation, he gestures weakly with his free hand. “D’you know when someone says their whole life flashed before their eyes? That’s sort’ve what it felt like. It wasn’t MY life, though. It was just...spots of different things, here and there-- and I could feel stuff about these things that I know I shouldn’t feel anything about.”

 

“...Like what?”

 

Gary closes his eyes. Immediately, he can call back to all he saw, heard, and felt. It’s hard to pick out individual moments, but he tries. “...There was a little girl I didn’t know. I felt really happy at first when I saw her, but then I felt sad...and angry. I think...if she’s real, I don’t think she’s alive anymore. It all felt so real, even if it wasn’t my thoughts. I remember this explosion…”

 

He trails off, because that feels too raw. He isn’t sure where that foreign memory ends and his own begins. Even when that had happened, Gary had been torn between feelings that he didn’t know and ones he’d tried to forget. It’s the fire. It’s always fire.

 

“...I think...I saw it for a second, without all its armor. It’s so alien looking. I don’t think I was supposed to see those things, and then in this...memory, I guess...it turned and looked right at me. I could hear it talking to me, I could hear--”

 

His throat goes very dry very quickly. He mouths the word ‘screaming’, perhaps even whispers it, but can’t get his vocal chords to work. It makes him physically shake with shock when Pikachu carefully crawls under his chin and into his folded arms. He glances at Ash briefly, who simply nods as a sign of approval. Pikachu isn’t Eevee; Eevee is far softer, far fluffier. The two Pokemon smell different, sound different. The warmth, though, and the feeling of safety...that’s the same. Gary’s highly grateful. 

 

Ash says what he can’t. “That sounds a lot like the nightmares you used to have about your mom and dad.”

 

Gary jerks his head down once. “Yeah. I heard them, too. I don’t remember how long that Pokemon was in my head. It felt like hours. It  _ hated _ me-- hated humans. And now when I try to sleep, it all comes back. With my Pokemon all out of commission like this and the nightmares, I just…”

 

It’s the most he’s opened up to anyone in a long time. He and Ash used to share everything together, and he’s surprised as to how easy it is to slip back into this as if Gary hasn’t deliberately tormented Ash for over a year. He hasn’t attempted to talk to his grandfather about the incident. Professor Oak rarely has a free moment, and Gary hates trying to bother him. His girls are all spooked themselves. 

 

His rival gently nudges him with his shoulder. “It’s okay.” He says. He doesn’t mention Gary being scared, or imply anything other than things are all right. “It’ll get better. All of it.” After a moment, during which Ash shares a silent look with Pikachu, he asks: “D’you wanna keep Pikachu tonight?”

 

“Huh…? Your Pikachu-- why?”

 

“Well...YOUR Pokemon aren’t better yet. You oughta have one around just in case there’s trouble, right?”

 

The argument that Gary has BOXES full of Pokemon in the PC is on the tip of his tongue...but in the end, he knows the real reason. The fact Ash hasn’t said it out loud is a kindness. Still, Gary shakes his head. “No...it’s all right. I should be okay. The girls all decided to just camp out with me on the floor in one of our rooms. And...I think maybe I’ll be fine, now.” They share a mutual, weak smile. Nurse Joy still hasn’t returned. “You wanna stick around with me for a little bit, until Nurse Joy finishes checking on my Pokemon?”

 

“Yeah Gary, sure.”

 

They don’t really speak about that night afterwards. There’s an unspoken understanding between them, standing at the counter side by side - things between them are changing for the better, but there’s no reason to bring it up in front of others.


	2. Discovery

Gary Oak is fourteen, and he’s fairly certain he’s got some sort of crush on another researcher.

 

A  _ male _ researcher.

 

It isn’t as if this is a gradual shift, either. The day he meets Markus, he simply finds himself marveling over the boy and realizes that - perhaps - he might be a bit infatuated. Gary couldn’t really recall feeling like that about another boy before. In fact, he’s pretty sure he enjoys still looking at girls. This whole thing is a puzzle...though, thankfully, it’s not one that distracts him too much.

 

And what  _ is _ it about Mark, anyway? Mark is just so different from girls Gary’s admired before. It’s not like this guy’s a slim, effeminate sorta dude - Mark’s practically a giant, and he looks like an actual thug when he’s out of his lab coat. There’s only a couple years of difference between them, but Mark is physically bigger and more well defined than any of the other boys training under Professor Rowan. He’s got a giant ring in his nose like a Tauros, his tongue has about four or five piercings, and he smokes. 

 

Gary is enamored with him.

 

The problem isn’t really the crush itself, persay. Gary can keep himself under control well enough (no silly, flustered behavior here). No, the problem is that he isn’t sure who he can really talk to about it. It’s one thing discussing his crushes on various girls with others - that’s to be expected. Some of the other guys encourage that sort of thing. Even the girls are happy to hear about it (obviously). This? This is different. It’s about when he starts debating calling up his grandfather to talk about it that he has a sudden and dreadful epiphany: what if Gramps doesn’t take this news well?

 

That’s when Gary starts to worry.

 

On his down time, his thoughts on Mark move from simply daydreaming to more troublesome ideas. Sam Oak was the most important one on the totem pole, yes, but how about what others would think? Friends, co-workers...strangers, even. Professor Rowan. Unlike with a girl, he can’t fathom just going over and asking Mark for...what do guys even do with guys they like? Is it still dating? Regardless, he watches Mark hang around once in a while with his two equally thuggy friends and has the sneaking suspicion that Mark would deck him rather than consider the offer. With that comes the sinking feeling of figuring that the whole crush is pointless.

 

It’s a welcome relief when Ash Ketchum shows up...even if it  _ does _ involve the fiasco that follows. The whirlwind of taking down Hunter J effectively puts a stop to any miniscule troubles Gary’s been worrying about (along with anything that isn’t ‘fight or flight’). Even at the end of it all - reflecting on the fact that the notorious J, her ship, and her crew have all been sunk inside the lake - Gary finds that it’s the breath of fresh air he needs. His worries over Mark are pushed aside for a moment longer with something he has no trouble wanting to discuss with folks like his grandfather: the possibility of training again.

 

Initially, this is what he sets out to see Ash about the night after their fight with J. It’s not yet late - the sun’s only just set - so Ash is able to tag along for supper. Though Gary extends the invite to Dawn and Brock, Ash’s two friends decline the offer.

 

“They’re tired.” Is Ash’s apologetic explanation. “You can’t really blame’em.”

 

“But you’re perfectly fine, huh?”

 

“Well...you promised dinner, so…”

 

So they wind up back on the lab campus. It’s not exactly a private affair, nor is it five-star food - Gary simply swipes twice at their cafeteria so that Ash can grab what he likes. Much of the dinner crowd is still lingering, some pouring over various textbooks and laptops. Other researchers are taking much needed breaks from their projects - groups catch up with one another, several are watching a game of rugby being broadcasted from Hoenn, and one or two are simply just sleeping beside half-eaten trays of food. There are few scattered calls to Gary as he leads Ash to an empty spot near the wall, but they’re both alone by the time they sit down.

 

“I didn’t know this many people lived here.” Ash comments once he’s seated. His hat is jostled as Pikachu leaps from the top of his head and lands on the table with a soft ‘thump’. The trainer absently slides the bottle of ketchup already on the table to his Pokemon, and Gary is treated to the absolutely revolting display of it slathering an entire container of fries in a literal sea of the condiment. 

 

Forcing his eyes away from the french-fry massacre, the researcher gives the cafeteria at large a once-over. “We’re all usually working...this is probably one of the only places you’ll see most of us at once.” One of the faces he happens to see in a split second is Mark’s, causing him to pause. It feels like ages since he’s seen his most recent crush, even if it’s only been a day or so. The mish-mash of thoughts over Mark flood his senses for a few moments before he feels a light tap on his arm. “--Huh?”

 

Ash withdraws his hand, eyes wide and owlish. “You spaced out. If you’re tired, you oughta go get some rest.”

 

Ignoring the tiny feeling that this conversation is familiar, Gary shakes his head. “Nah, I’m alright. Us researchers - sometimes we just sorta stay stuck in lab-mode.” The joke makes Ash roll his eyes before he returns to his food. Gary, because he knows Ash and knows the boy has no problem trying to chat with a mouthful of food, keeps quiet for a few minutes. It’s a smart move; neither Ash nor Pikachu are very polite eaters at all, and time hasn’t changed that. A couple of his coworkers will surely be staring. While the trainer is making a mess, Gary finds himself idly watching Mark again. The taller researcher seems to have brought his own two goofy friends to hang out with him - Gary only knows them by their nicknames, and he knows that Mark calls the shorter one (who looks eerily a bit like Ash) ‘Honch’ and the taller one ‘Fetch’d’. He’s heard them call Mark ‘Skar’; it took him a while to figure out that the three boys had nicknames based on Flying-Type Pokemon, and--

 

“You’re doin’ it again.” Gary isn’t lucky enough this time to have Ash not go looking for what’s got his attention. “Who’re those guys? They don’t cause trouble or anything, do they?”

 

With a short huff, Gary rests his cheek on his palm. His fork stabs down into a couple stray spinach leaves. “No-- I mean, not the way you think they do.” When he glances up at his friend, Ash is staring at him - this isn’t a topic he’s going to let go of just yet. “The blond one, the big guy...he works with me on a few projects. The other guys are his friends. They’re...okay. Kind’ve obnoxious, I guess, but they don’t bother anybody.”

 

Of course, Ash says exactly the right (or wrong) thing soon after: “Looks like they’re botherin’  _ you _ .”

 

“Lookit you being all perceptive. I’m impressed, considering your extent of people-knowledge is little to none.” It’s a lame comeback, and Gary knows it. What’s more, so does Ash - the boy crosses his arms and leans back in his chair, his expression screaming about how unimpressed he is. “They’re not bothering me, all right? I wasn’t even really looking at them. You know how you can just space out and sort’ve  _ look _ like you’re looking at something?”

 

Ash remains silent. Whoever’s been coaching him on how to handle these sorts of conversations (and Gary’s betting it’s Brock), they’re doing a fantastic job...unfortunately for Gary. The researcher isn’t even sure what Ash stands to gain from it all: it’s not as though this has anything to do with Pokemon or training or anything that happened the day before. 

 

Still, Ash doesn’t relent, and Gary is forced to fill in the silence at last. “They’re not  _ bothering _ me.” He repeats, “It doesn’t really have anything to do with  _ them _ . It’s Mark, that’s all.”

 

“What about him?”

 

“When’d you get so  _ nosy _ ?” Gary snaps, dropping his silverware and folding his arms on the table. “Here’s a question: why are you bugging me about it so much?”

 

Ash thinks for a moment before responding, which is something else relatively new. Typically, he’d just blurt out the first thing that came to mind. After considering his thoughts, he answered honestly: “I mean, it’s kinda rude to invite your friends someplace and then sorta...ignore’em. I thought you wanted to talk to me, that’s all. If you’re all caught up with that guy, it’s gotta be important, right?”

 

Gary can’t help but stare at Ash and attempt not to look as dumbfounded as he is. In the end, all he can do is mumble ‘right’ before resigning himself to his fate. He still hasn’t really talked to anyone regarding his actual crush on his fellow researcher. It might be beneficial to finally spill the beans...assuming Ash wanted to hear about it. On one hand, Ash was about as open and honest as people came. On the other, he was also perhaps one of the densest when it came to being attracted to others. It’s a gamble, and Gary’s not sure he likes admitting to himself that perhaps one of the prices he’d pay for risking it would be their friendship. Ash wouldn’t part ways with him over something like this...would he?

 

“Okay.” Gary dips his head, pursing his lips for a second. “Okay. You’re right. This wasn’t exactly what I wanted to drag you out of the Pokemon Center for, but I need-- I need somebody to listen to me about this, anyway.” It still takes him a bit of time to work up the nerve, and in that time he’s acutely aware that anyone at any of the nearby tables might be listening in. He falters a couple of times, mouth opening and then snapping closed, before he hesitantly goes on. “Look...I might like this guy. Not like friends-” He emphasises, “-but as, you know...ah, I don’t wanna say ‘how Brock likes girls’-- it’s SORT OF like that, but not as stupid. You get it?”

 

From across the table, Ash makes a soft ‘ooh’ noise. Pikachu chimes in with a chirp of (what Gary assumes is) understanding. “You  _ like _ that big guy?” He asks. Gary nods. “Ohhhh, I get it…! So you’re getting all  _ sappy _ about him, huh?”

 

Ash is laughing, and Gary has a hard time registering that at first. The space between his shirt collar and his hairline feels hot. “What--?! Hey, shut up!”

 

“Sorry.” Ash does calm down, at least, though the mirthful smile on his face doesn’t go away. “I don’t get to tease  _ you _ about stuff all that much. I couldn’t help it.”

 

“I’d say I deserved some pay-back, but…”

 

“Yeah, yeah, I know, I’m sorry.” The trainer glances over Mark’s way again - the blond’s tucking a cigarette behind his ear. “So, uh...you’re keepin’ that a secret, I guess? He looks kinda mean from over here. I’d be kinda scared of him, too.”

 

“I’m not  _ scared _ of him! Sheesh, Ash. Just because he’s big doesn’t mean he’s  _ scary _ .”

 

“You’re scared of something.” Ash shoots back with a pointed look. “Or you would’ve said something to him already. You don’t do secrets...not unless you’re trying to torment somebody with’em.”

 

“Low blow.”

 

“It’s true.”

 

Gary hates that he can’t deny that, even if he knows from Ash’s standpoint that it IS true. “I’m not afraid of Mark.” He firmly states, “Part of the reason I like him is because of how he is when he’s working. He’s a totally different person. I dunno...maybe I think that’s how he actually IS, not whatever he’s doing over there…” Which appears to be making rude hand gestures at his short friend. “But it’s not like how it’d be if he was a girl, y’know?”

 

“I guess so.” Ash sounds reluctant to admit that aloud. After a short pause, the boy leans forward over the table and pokes Gary in the jaw. “Kinda rare for you to be afraid of something. You really think people’d get upset if they knew?”

 

“I don’t know.” Gary admits. “I know it upsets  _ some _ people in general. I haven’t even told Gramps yet.”

 

At that, Ash’s expression takes on a confused and even almost offended tone. “Not even your grandpa…? Professor Oak loves you-- why would he care about what you like?”

 

“He’s old, Ash-”

 

“What’s that gotta do with anything?”

 

“You have to let me finish before you ask questions, come on! What I mean is that Gramps is from a time where this...didn’t happen a whole lot. It was frowned upon and stuff. You either kept it a secret or people’d get you in trouble - they used to throw people in asylums for it.”

 

Ash isn’t deterred. If anything, he looks even more annoyed with Gary’s words than before. “He’s your grandpa.” The trainer firmly tells him, letting his fist fall to the table. The dull smack that comes from it makes a few of the people at other tables glance their way. “All you guys’ve ever had was each other. He  _ loves _ you. You really think he’d just let something get in the way of that? Cause I don’t, and he’s not even MY grandpa.”

 

It’s a point - hopeful, maybe a bit naive, but a valid point nonetheless. Their arrangement as guardian and child hadn’t really come about gradually, but Samuel Oak had raised Gary to the best of his abilities and certainly had never left him feeling unloved or not cared for. Old-generation ideologies aside, it  _ would _ be fairly cruel to throw those years away over something like Gary’s stupid crush on his coworker. It’s the uncertainty over it, though, that still bothers the boy. He doesn’t respond to Ash at first, and Ash gradually seems to grasp that the issue isn’t as simple as he wants it to be. 

 

“You really should talk to him.” His friend finally murmurs. “He’s gonna at least see that you’re all upset about something, and if you don’t tell him…”

 

Gary doesn’t need Ash to say just what might come of that. The idea of his grandfather blaming himself for Gary’s unsung problem stings. “I know.” He finally mumbles. “I’ll...try, I guess.” After a moment, he shrugs and attempts to ease the tension from the air. “YOU didn’t stop being friends with me as soon as I said it, anyway, so that’s a plus.”

 

“I wouldn’t.” And the sheer determination and firmness in Ash’s voice stuns Gary. “You’re my friend. Who you like isn’t gonna change that...I mean, unless they start making a mess of something and you join in. I might have a problem, then.”

 

With a snort, the edges of Gary’s mouth finally curl up into a nervous grin. “Thanks. This was WAY off from what I wanted to talk to you about...but thank you.” He forces himself to shut up before more sappy word-vomit comes pouring out. One or two thank-yous was plenty to get the point across - any more and it’d be entering boot-licking territory. 

 

That’s all that Ash seems to think needs to be said on the matter, anyway. The boy’s face lights up brighter than a Chinchou when Gary confesses his plight about wanting to take training seriously again. Oddly enough, it all but drives thoughts of Mark and the feelings related to him from Gary’s mind; he doesn’t even notice when the boy and his friends get up and leave. He and Ash spend another hour talking about Ash’s travels thus far and ways to get Gary back into training without sacrificing too much of his time in the lab. On their way back to the Pokemon Center, Ash convinces Gary to at least start training a little each day and that it’ll ultimately be good for him. He also subtly reminds Gary to call his grandfather. “To catch up.” Ash says, but they both secretly know what in actuality the Oaks will be discussing.

 

At the end of the night, when Gary shuts off his desk lamp and climbs into bed, he’s relieved that he made an effort to rekindle their friendship. Friends like Ash weren’t common things to have. There’s a note on his calendar to go for a quick run with Umbreon tomorrow after his shift, and a sticky-note plastered over the screen of his room’s video phone ordering him to call his grandfather. Before talking with Ash, he’d feel a bit uneasy about both of notes, but now...now they don’t really phase him at all.

 

It isn’t until the next day that Gary Oak realizes he might have his second male crush already.


	3. Grief

Gary Oak is twenty-two years old, and his girlfriend is about to leave him.

 

She’s also about to leave their son, who is blissfully sleeping upstairs and unaware of the life-changing event happening below him.

 

Isaac wasn’t a planned thing. The idea of having kids at all hadn’t even crossed Gary’s mind, nor that of Rachel. They were happily invested in their work at the laboratory when they weren’t with one another. Rachel was finishing up her medical certification so that she could transfer out to a place in the mountains, somewhere harsh and dangerous that Gary was quite honestly worried about. She was confident enough, though, and frequently told him to stop fussing about it. He had his own projects to deal with, didn’t he? Those talks had always ended with snickers and him plucking her glasses off of her face. They were  _ great _ together - her parents kept not-so-subtly hinting at when he was going to ask her to marry him, and Sam Oak was perhaps even worse. Not that they minded. Settling just wasn’t in the cards for the two. They had entire lives ahead of them, after all, with places to go and things to do and…

 

...and then Isaac sort of--  _ happened _ .

 

If getting married hadn’t been in the plan yet for the near future, babies were a foreign subject all together. In the beginning, Rachel had told him on one of their first dates that she doubted she ever even  _ wanted _ children. Ever. And at the time, Gary had been perfectly all right with that. Career and whatnot, of course. Neither of them was sure what went wrong, but they soon found themselves expecting a baby in four short months and little in the way of options to deal with the matter. They were young - maybe, perhaps, too young - and panicked. Gary resigned himself to their future roles and steeled himself soon after. He read up on childhood, on what to expect and how to proceed. If there was one thing he had always been, it was ambitious; he went the extra mile to not only prepare for the impending arrival of his son, but made sure Rachel was well taken care of. She barely had to think of something before he had it ready for her. He even went to her parents to apologize (her mother never really did act the same way towards him afterwards, but her father seemed to accept the events rather well). 

 

He was there beside Rachel when Isaac was born, and finally holding the child strengthened his resolve to be as good a parent as he could possibly be. That was all there really was to it. Did it make things harder?  _ Arceus did it ever _ , but did he regret it? No, not really. Perhaps he could’ve done with waiting a bit longer to have kids, but he found he quite liked fatherhood with or without the added few years. Isaac - or ‘Izzy’ - was just a part of his life, now.

 

It was an absolute sucker-punch of a hit when, earlier, Rachel sat him down and told him that she was leaving.

 

He can only stare at her, sitting across the kitchen table from him with her eyes on her folded hands, and try to work through just what he could’ve done. It had to have been him. His mouth works soundlessly. A memory of a breath escapes him, producing almost no sound.

 

“...I told you.” Rachel says, quietly, “I didn’t want kids.”

 

That hurts him worse than if she’d instead blamed him for her wanting to leave. Gary still can’t find words for how he feels. He can’t speak.

 

The woman tucks a long strand of dark hair behind her ear. Her eyes are swimming with tears - she’s hurting over this, too, and he wants to hold her and tell her it’s all right. It’s not all right, though, and if she really walks out the front door then Gary has a hard time believing it will ever be any sort of right ever again. “I can’t do this.” She says, raising one of her hands to her mouth. “I can’t. I was trying, but this...this isn’t me. I didn’t ever want kids, Gary. Not ever. No matter how much mom begged me and how dad would talk about...about...building nursery furniture. I love him, I really do, but I just can’t…”

 

Her voice petters out so pitifully that he can’t help himself. He reaches across the table for her remaining hand, and she takes it away. It leaves him feeling so cold and alone. “Rache.” He finds himself rasping. A quick swallow briefly fixes his dry throat. “Rache, we can do this.”

 

“YOU can do this.” Her rebuttal is bitter, even a little angry, and it rocks Gary. She sets her mouth in a thin line. “YOU can. You’ve BEEN doing this, you’re so immersed in it, and you’re doing so good...my parents think you’re a saint. And you are.” The last three words are said with bittersweet fondness. “You really are. You’re a good dad. But I’m...I’m not a mom, Gary. When I hold him, I don’t feel--...I don’t feel  _ anything _ . And that scares me! I kept hoping and hoping that things would change while I was carrying him, and then after I had him, and after a full year--” She gestures weakly around. “...here we are.”

 

Gary isn’t sure what to say to that sort of monumental admission. He recalls Rachel acting very aloof and distant, sometimes, during and after her pregnancy. He remembers her hesitance and even reluctance to talk about plans for the future. Even the night before, when he went to put Isaac to bed, she lingered by the door to the baby’s room instead of coming closer to help tuck him in. It was such a small thing...but with dread, he can see the true reason for it now.

 

“I know it’s selfish...I know it’s awful. My parents probably won’t ever forgive me, but I just...Gary, I can’t.”

 

“You can.” He breathes, a near-silent plea.

 

Rachel shakes her head, using the side of her hand to wipe under her eyes. Even when she cries, she’s beautiful. “I’m sorry.” She tells him. “You did everything right. I wish...that it could’ve been different. I don’t think there’s another person like you out there.”

 

“So stay here!” His voice startles him with how loud it is. He’s afraid for a second of having woken Isaac, but only after does he realize he’s simply spoken at normal volume and not in melancholy whispers. “I love you.”

 

“I know.” She replies, her voice so small. “I love you, too. But I can’t ask you to give him up...so this is where it has to end.”

 

The next ten minutes bleed into one another. One second she’s there, and the next the front door closes with a soft ‘click’ that might as well be a nuclear bomb going off. He vaguely recalls her kissing his cheek, the wetness on her face lingering on his skin. 

 

Rachel doesn’t go upstairs to say good-bye to Isaac. 

 

Half an hour after sitting alone at the kitchen table, Gary finally moves to numbly stand. He blindly fumbles his phone from his pocket on his way to the nursery. It sits between his shoulder and his ear, ringing, as he reaches down to lift a sleeping Izzy into his arms.

 

He’s not sure why he doesn’t call his grandfather first. It doesn’t hit him until after Ash Ketchum picks up the other end of the line with a groggy ‘H’yeah?’ that he’s in fact dialed his friend. He doesn’t speak for a few seconds, prompting Ash to angrily demand who’s called to wake him up until three words drop off Gary’s tongue.

 

“Rachel left me.”

 

Ash swears. Ash doesn’t normally swear, even as an adult, so the effect on Gary almost prompts hysterical laughter. His chest even starts shaking, though he realizes that this is because he has finally started to cry rather than laugh. 

 

It’s a testament to Charizard’s flying speed that Ash marches in through the front door only five minutes later. He seems dumbfounded upon finding Gary still in the baby’s room, and absently tosses the spare key up and down before the gravity of the situation catches up to him. It takes a bit of coaxing, but soon he’s managed to get Gary seated right back at the kitchen table while the kettle warms on the stove. Tea is perhaps one of the only things Ash has learned not to burn. 

 

“Talk.” The trainer says, sinking heavily into the chair adjacent from him (and thank Mew for small miracles, because if he’d sat across from Gary the researcher might have begun outright bawling).

 

So he does. Isaac is asleep still, now in his mobile swing on the table. Pikachu keeps it moving by laying one paw on the end and gently rocking it back and forth. It’s far from the first time Ash and Pikachu have met the child, and the Electric-Type’s comfort being around Isaac shows that. Both trainer and Pokemon listen intently to what Gary has to say, pausing only so that Ash can quickly attend to the kettle before it begins to utter a shrill scream. The familiar scent of the brew that Ash soon passes him brings Gary some sort of ease - he’d had his grandfather provide batches of this tea himself, and the smell always reminds Gary of being much younger and under the man’s care.

 

“Even though she told you before,” Ash slowly says, finally, “It’s not like you both could’ve done anything by the time you found out, right?”

 

“We could’ve adopted him out, I guess.” Gary replies, but the thought makes his stomach twist up.

 

Ash winces, as if channeling his thoughts. Mirroring its master, Pikachu chirps uneasily. “She’s right, though.”

 

The researcher groans, putting his face into his hands. “I know she is. If we’d caught it sooner, things’d be different, so I understand, I just--”

 

“Hey, hey! I wasn’t talking about that. I was talking about you being a dad.” The alarm on Ash’s face is almost comical. “Easy.”

 

In the swing, Isaac stirs and twitches one of his little fists. Gary takes a moment to check over him before determining that the baby is still bound to sleep a while longer. “I just did what everyone ought to do.”

 

“But not everyone does it, that’s the difference.” Ash leans forward, cupping his hands around his mug. “I hate to say it, but I’m glad she didn’t take him with her. He’s better off with you. Look...the way I see it, she at least was able to think ahead about what’d be best. Even if it sucks. I’m not telling you to hurry up and get over it, but it could be worse.”

 

It really could’ve been. Gary’s heard the stories. It makes him even more grieved to know that Rachel’s gone; she didn’t drag him through hell and ruin his life out of spite, after all, and the idea of her even doing so was absurd. She was a genuinely wonderful person. And she was…

 

A heavy hand, worn with callouses and even scars, settles on his forearm. “It’s gonna be all right.” Ash reassures him. A tremor races through Gary, threatening more tears. He doesn’t want to cry. It’d be terribly weak to cry, especially in front of who’s essentially his best friend. Ash settles this by scooting his chair over and throwing one of his arms over Gary’s shoulders. “I mean it. Nobody’s gonna let you do this on your own.”

 

So...Gary allows himself to cry. He mourns the fresh loss of someone who he’d thought up until maybe an hour ago would be his partner for the rest of his life. He grieves over Rachel’s now permanent absence. He lets Ash hold him and tell him all the stupid little things that any sad person ever hears: “It’s okay” “It’s all right”, all of those little things that someone can never really predict for certain. He’s always prided himself on being a logical thinker, but Gary can’t help but want to give into the despair that says that he’s never going to be okay.

 

And maybe he won’t. Maybe it won’t heal. Not entirely, anyway. As his grandfather tells him later, sometimes those sorts of wounds linger on and on and on. “The loss of someone you love is hard to accept,” The old man tells him, his gaze full of pity and understanding. “No matter how it is you lose them. I don’t think anyone in this world has been lucky enough to make through without the sorts of scars this tends to leave behind. At the risk of sounding overly poetic: ‘It’s better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all’.” He’s right, of course - Samuel Oak usually is - but it doesn’t erase the hurt. 

 

Delia Ketchum appears around nine pm, her arms laden with baby things likely from Ash’s days in diapers, and all but forces her son and the emotional puddle that’s Gary Oak out the door. Ash doesn’t drive, and likely never will, so they take Charizard to Saffron and Ash wordlessly guides Gary into a bar that Gary thinks once was a casino. 

 

“It was.” Ash replies, darkly, and that’s all that’s said on the subject.

 

Slowly, like ants on a food trail, Ash’s friends begin to show up. Some don’t stay long - long enough to give Gary their condolences and to ask about Izzy - but others pull up a chair near their table and ramble on about feelings and marriage and heartbreak until they run out of things to say. Misty doesn’t fall into either category. The woman sits almost directly in Gary’s lap, hands him a shot of what might be whiskey (Gary’s getting a bit too drunk to tell for sure) and says: “Can’t win’em all.” He’s always liked Misty. They were never really friends, not like she and Ash are, but she’s easy enough to get along with now that they’re older. As kids? Absolutely not. 

 

Perhaps the biggest shocker of the night is when Professor Rowan shows up. The man is about as old - if not older - than his grandfather, but Gary’s mentor is standing much taller than Sam Oak can as of late. He handles his cane well, with dignity, and doesn’t bat an eye when drinking his own poison for the night. “I want you to know,” He murmurs, carefully, “Rachel turned in her coat. I believe she’s moving to study with my protege in Kalos.” The hidden meaning is well received - the chances of him running into his ex at work will be nil from now on. It’ll make getting through the day a gamble; the absence of her might very well ease his burden one day, but make him feel the chill of her loss on others. Rowan stays for a good hour before quietly excusing himself for the night. He claps Gary on the shoulder and slips him a couple pieces of brightly colored candy on his way out.

 

When the flow of well-wishers has ebbed, Gary and Ash are sitting nearly alone at their table, nursing what Gary firmly states are their last drinks of the night. Ash has only agreed for the sake of his own ass: Charizard is not a fan of his shenanigans when he’s hammered.

 

“How’d you meet her, anyway?”

 

The burn of alcohol has numbed Gary’s senses and loosened his tongue slightly. He swirls his beer in its bottle as he considers the question. “Work.” He says, finally, smirking. “C’mon, Ash, you knew that.”

 

“I can’t remember if my socks are on under my sneakers right now, Gary.” Ash fires back. He settles heavily against the back of his chair, using a palm to rub at his forehead. “No but I mean...You were seeing that guy before, right?”

 

“Who, Cy?” That gives him pause. He hadn’t thought about Cy in a couple years...for good reason, obviously. “Why?”

 

“I thought you were gay.”

 

Gary nearly snorts beer up into his nose. He gives a wet laugh, thumping Ash on the back. “What?! No man, no! I like’m both. I tried to date your buddy Dawn, remember?”

 

“Who’s a lesbian.” The trainer blurts out. 

 

“Yeah-- Zoe, right?”

 

Ash nods, grinning. “Yeahhhh. She still tells me to say it wasn’t you who turned her gay, by the way.”

 

“Ah,” Gary frowns, shaking his head. “I don’t think of it like that. How’re you supposed to know for sure if you don’t go out there and try it all, huh? It’s all good.”

 

There’s no response from Ash, and Gary’s content to sit in silence thinking his muddled thoughts for a while. When he finally does glance at his friend, Ash looks as though he’s struggling. Gary’s interest is piqued immediately. His elbow finds Ash’s ribs. “Hey...big guy. ‘S the matter with you, huh? Usually you’re the chatty guy.”

 

Something about the way Ash looks at him vaguely reminds Gary of something...maybe a conversation from years ago. He’s too inebriated to properly remember. “I don’t really think on it much.” The dark-haired man rakes his fingers back through his hair, and Gary absently grabs his ratty ball cap before it falls to the floor. “About people. Being with people. Like with you and Rachel.” The admission makes Gary raise a brow. “But uh...I dunno. I always thought that it never mattered, y’know, who anybody wanted to be with. I always sorta felt like I wouldn’t care who I ended up with. Girl...guy…” He shrugs, swallowing a mouthful of some molasses-looking drink. “...Dunno. Not sure why I’m bringing it up right now, just felt like saying it.”

 

He doesn’t seem embarrassed or nervous about what he’s saying at all. A much younger Gary Oak would be envious, but this older Gary can only admire his nonchalance. The researcher lightly taps the neck of his bottle to the rim of Ash’s mug, grasping the man’s attention again. “Hey...if you like’m both, you do you. People’re people, far as I’m concerned. Long as you ain’t an asshole, I’m interested, yeah? Right?”

 

“...Right.”

 

“Right.” Gary repeats, grinning toothily. “How many times’ve you dated somebody, huh? Big ole Farfetch’d egg?”

 

And Ash surprises him by shaking his head. “Serena.”

 

“...What, that blond Kalosian girl? You actually  _ did _ date her? When?!”

 

Ash rolls his eyes, plunking his mug down. “I dunno, sometime after Alola. It didn’t exactly work out.”

 

“Why’s that?” Gary’s genuinely curious. “You guys have a falling out?”

 

“A bit. She was just overly into the whole ‘us’ and nothing else.” There’s a cringe coming on, from the look on Ash’s face. The man raises his glass to his lips. “You know me...romance isn’t really my deal.”

 

“Do I ever, Ashy-Boy.”

 

“Arecus, no-- you’ve had way too much if you’re calling me that after ten years.”

 

Gary neither agrees nor disagrees with that. It’s probably true. Probably. He milks it while he can. “Aaaaaassssshhhyyyy-Booooyyyyy.”

 

“You can find your way back to your house on your own, if you want.”

 

“Touch-y.” He reaches out on a whim, grabbing for Ash’s glass and successfully taking it from him. When he sips from it, he frowns and runs his tongue over his lips. Ash pointedly looks the other way. “...Have you been drinking fucking  _ root beer _ all night?!”

 

“Designated flyer. I have an excuse.”

 

“You’re a gigantic  _ puss _ !”

 

There’s no stumbling when they finally leave. Gary’s pretty steady on his feet for someone who’s just gone through not only a heartbreak but enough liquor to end the Prohibition Era. He needs a hand getting up onto Charizard’s back, and out of interest for his safety Ash decides to ride behind him. Gary inevitably says a few raunchy things, and Ash finally has to threaten to have him Flamethrowered for the researcher to shut his yap the rest of the flight back home.

 

He might have gone in for a kiss at the door. Ash also might have told him ‘not on the first date’ before enlisting the help of his mother to cart the plastered and nearly passed out Gary up to his bedroom.


	4. Bliss

Gary Oak is twenty-five years old, and Ash Ketchum has been living with him for over a year.

 

He’s not sure exactly how that started. Maybe innocently at first - Ash’s mother was complaining about him being far too old to live with her, and Ash needed a place to (literally) hang his hat. The agreement was that he was supposed to be courteous of Isaac’s schedule and mindful of his cleanliness. No Pokemon battles in the front yard, no long jogs that ended at midnight after the toddler had gone to bed. There was nothing that wasn’t platonic in the beginning. Ash was barely ever there as it was, traveling around the globe and what not.

 

But gradually it just...sort of happened.

 

As lame as it sounds, that’s all Gary can helplessly tell people when they ask. Ash not only kept his promise about being mindful of the baby, he went out of his way to help out with Izzy. At some point, Gary could even get the man to change Izzy’s diapers - not a simple favor to ask of one’s friends. When Ash was around, they spent more and more time together without even realizing it. It was perhaps the most time they’d spent consecutively with one another since they were children. It was flat-out ridiculous to Gary that they never had before, once they started. 

 

Their talks and their walks turned slowly into movies in with Izzy and dinner out in different towns. It took a stupid amount of time for Gary to realize that he was being courted...and to subsequently discover that Ash was doing it  _ on purpose _ . Imagine! Ash Ketchum, taking the romantic reigns. People were going to laugh Gary out of town years later, he could feel it. 

 

Soon, they go from having separate rooms to simply sharing Gary’s. Ash just sort of starts crashing there once he comes through the door after another long journey, and Gary’s not about to try and move a man almost two heads taller and fifty pounds heavier than he is. So there Ash stays, his things migrating over until they mesh with Gary’s entirely. It doesn’t happen often, but the times that Ash is around and shares the bed with Gary are wonderful. 

 

People have begun to address them as if they’re ‘a thing’, too. That  _ also _ just casually sort of happened. If anyone’s upset about their shared closeness, Gary isn’t aware of it. He notices this when folks call. Just this morning, Sam Oak told him to tell Ash hello. No question as to IF Ash was there, just assuming he was. There’s a pile of mail - official, personal, and some fan mail - addressed to the man on the table, too. Gary can’t remember when Ash switched over his mailing address.

 

And when Ash comes downstairs from putting Izzy to bed, nestling up on the couch beside him, Gary thinks about Izzy in general and how the toddler’s adjusted to Ash’s being here. 

 

“He said it again.”

 

Speak of the devil. Gary lets his head fall onto Ash’s shoulder, lets the breath ease out of his lungs. “‘Big Dada’?”

 

“Yep. I’m not THAT big.”

 

“You’re taller than me. If the shoe fits, Ash…”

 

Ash must be too tired to argue. He rests one heavy arm over the back of the couch behind Gary’s shoulders, then thinks better of it and just wraps it tight around the researcher. “You’re okay with him calling me that?”

 

A yawn threatens to pop Gary’s jaw out of place. “Mmf...told you earlier: doesn’t bother me.”

 

“He’s your son.”

 

“And? You live here, you sleep in my bed, you help take care of him...I don’t see how that’s not an appropriate name for him to call you.”

 

Not that it hadn’t made Gary’s eyes bug out to hear it, earlier that day. A small smile crawls onto his lips at the memory - Ash had nearly dropped the boy he was holding high over his head, and his subsequent fumbling had made Izzy laugh and laugh and laugh. Maybe if Isaac didn’t adore Ash as much as he did, it’d rub Gary the wrong way to hear him call someone else ‘dada’. As it stands, it seems Isaac is very attached to the man who’s become Gary’s partner. Secretly, Gary’s relieved. Suppose Isaac HADN’T gotten used to or bonded with Ash while Gary was busy trying to remember how to play the romance game? 

 

“Hey…~” Ash’s fingers sift through Gary’s hair, and any leftover tension from the work day prior easily is forgotten. “Y’know, I’m not usually the type to make stupid puns...but you look pretty  _ sappy _ , Oak.”

 

The shorter man pretends to gag, rolling his eyes. “Disgusting.”

 

“You really do, though. What’re you thinking about?”

 

And Gary could continue on in their mildly joking manner...but instead, he gives in and says what’s really on his mind. “You always seem to be right here when I need you. For everything. So I think you sort’ve belong here, now.”

 

“...What, really?” 

 

“No foolin’.” He promises the trainer. “So...thank you.”

 

The couch creaks a little as it shifts; Gary has the foresight to turn his head slightly and accept Ash’s kiss before it lands on his cheek instead of his lips. They linger that way for a few moments, and even after they pull away from one another there’s no more chatter. The silence is comfortable, and speaks volumes where they don’t feel the need to.

 

Gary Oak is twenty-five years old, and he has finally found exactly what he needs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy New Year, everyone.

**Author's Note:**

> This was almost late. It turned into a chaptered monster that refused to be a one-shot. So uh...sorry about that. Happy New Year~


End file.
